Save the American Dream- Stand with Wisconsin

By Ann

marxist.org

On March 25, 1911 two wealthy factory owners fled to  the roof of a burning building while 146 of their employees perished in a fire.  The owners had locked the doors to the stairwells and when there was a fire, the workers could not get out.  Crowds gathered and watched helpless as the women either jumped to their death or were consumed by flames.  This was the death for women who worked without bargaining power.  This was the death for women who had to endure nine hour workdays on the weekdays and seven hour days on the weekends for very little pay.  This was the death for women whose union sisterhood would change the future of the city and prompt national labor reform. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triangle_Shirtwaist_Factory_fire

In Wisconsin, a republican bill was recently passed to rob state workers of their collective bargaining rights and to reduce their pay.  This bill has resulted in protesters from Wisconsin demanding that the government get out of bed with big business and to stop legislating in an effort to kill the middle class.  

  SOLIDARITY OF THE PEOPLE

After the triangle fire, more than 350,000 marched in a funeral procession to support the women murdered by industrial negligence.   This united movement combined with a women’s labor union movement changed labor laws both on the state and federal level and it was the impetus for social reforms such as the New Deal.  It had to be.  Two years after this industrial genocide, the fat cat factory owners were fined AGAIN for locking the doors to the stairwells!  

PIZZA PARTY

Wisconsin has enjoyed solidarity from the working class all over the world.   International support from Egypty, Korea, Finland, Germany, Canada, Turkey, and other countries have ordered pizzas for the spirited protestors.   Actually, 12 countries and 38 states have participated in this pizza party. 

Their support is not limited to pizza.  On February 26, 2011 the American working class from all 50 states rallied to show their solidarity and support for the disenfranchised union workers in Wisconsin.  The rally, entitled “Save the American Dream” was prompted by the progressive movement and it brought out union workers from all 50 states.   http://front.moveon.org/50-photos-from-the-50-state-rallies-to-save-the-american-dream/

This weekend was truly an exercise of democracy in action and I hope that through this exhibition of solidarity and the public stance of the unbreakable American spirit will ensure that big business and the political party of corporate groupies do not succeed in their attempts to marginalize and annihilate the middle class. 

The world is STILL on fire! Are you paying attention?

By Shannon

In America we tend to suffer from two afflictions:  willful blindness and having the attention span of a gnat.  Perhaps this is due to our long term prosperity.  Perhaps it is because we’ve become used to microwaved food, first-date sex, and instant news on the internet.  No matter the reason, the first step in solving the problem is admitting there is one.  

Hi!  My name is Shannon and I’m self-absorbed more often than I’d care to admit.

When things don’t affect us directly and/or they happen “over there” we may be glued to the TV or other news source for several hours… and then we move on.  Moving on too quickly might cause us to miss something.  The world is still on fire!  Are you paying attention?

Pic from http://www.wired.com/

Is anyone else wondering about the global chaos?  Why now?  Why so widespread?  The 1960s were a time of upheaval for our nation, but was the world on fire then too?  I don’t see evidence of it in history books. 

Here’s a quick re-cap of the last two and a half months.  Research the thing and see if you can find any commonalities or any reason that can answer the questions:  Why now?  Why so widespread?

12/16/10 –       the world was relatively calm

12/17 –            Tunisian police slap Mohamed Bouazzizi, aged 26, for operating a cart with no

permit.  Bouazzizi responds by setting himself on fire.  Revolution begins.

12/24 –            Tunisia is on fire – protesters start setting things on fire.

12/27 –            Tunisian Labor Unions organize protests in Tunis, Sousse, Sfaz, and Meknassi

1/7/11 –           U.S. urges peaceful protests

1/14 –              Tunisian President Ben Ali steps down – 68 dead according to some reports

1/28 –              Egypt’s Day of Rage because police slapped 24 year old Gamal Hassanein

Obama addresses Egyptian protest

1/30 –              Exiled Islamic extremist Rachid el-Ghannouchi returns to Tunisia

2/3 –                Yemen’s Day of Rage

2/10 –              Egyptian Labor Unions involved in organizing throughout the Revolution say, “This Revolution will never stop until Mubarak goes.”

2/11 –              Egyptian President Mubarak steps down.  Around 400 dead.

2/13 –              Egyptian Parliament dissolved and Constitution suspended – Military takes over

2/14 –              Bahrain’s Day of Rage

                        Iran’s Day of Rage – seems to die out quickly.  (The few nominal government allowed unions that exist seem to be at least minimally involved.)

                        Wisconsin Labor Union Protest begins.

2/17 –              Libya’s Day of Rage – thousands dead as of this post.  (Libya does have Unions, but with the limited news coming out of Libya thanks to its tyrant who knows if or how the unions are helping the movement.)

                        Wisconsin Democrats run away like little girls.

2/18 –              White House issues a statement about Bahrain, Yemen, Iran, and Lybia

2/20 –              Bahraini government withdraws soldiers and provides protesters with electricity and food while they camp on the street.

2/21 –              In Egypt, Islamic extremist group Muslim Brotherhood begins political party.  Their spokesman says, “When we talk about the slogans of the revolution - freedom, social justice, equality - all of these are in the Sharia (Islamic law)." 

2/23 –              President Obama speaks about each country in a press conference.

2/25 –              Bahrain calls for a National Day of Mourning for those who have died in the protests.  The Bahraini Labor Union calls for a general strike so that all citizens can continue protests.

2/25 –              Iraq’s Day of Rage – aided by Labor Unions

By the way, Egyptian unions have sent pizza to Wisconsin protesters.

Now several other states in the U.S. are experiencing Union protests at the Capitol.  A 50 state protest has been called.  

I support people’s rights to freedom and liberty.  I abhor tyrants like Mubarak and Gadhafi and Ahmadinejad.  I support people’s right to an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work.  I oppose the fact that unionized “government workers cost the states $40.10 per hour in wage and benefits, while workers in the private sector only cost on average $27.88 per hour. In case you’re doing the math, which you should be, that’s a 44% difference." See here.  Get rid of union subsidies and Wisconsin can afford more teachers.  I support the right to peacefully assemble, but I abhor chaos.  

Also, I can't help but wonder what "the other hand" is doing in the moments when we forego willful blindness and focus for more than a nano-second on the union-organized global chaos.

Criminals Aren't All Bad and Police Aren't All Good

By Ann

“Nothing can destroy a government more quickly than its failure to observe its own laws.” 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mapp_v._Ohio

A man stands at the gas pump swaying to and fro.  His mind cloudy and his vision blurred by his overindulgence at the local pub.  After what feels like an eternity, his car is full and he goes home.  The only problem is that he didn’t take the pump out of his car first and he took that home too.  He promptly brings the pump back to the gas station and he is ultimately charged with driving under the influence.

Over 1800 miles away a man is charged with possessing and delivering illegal narcotics.  He is in an interrogation room and is given the option to cooperate to reduce his sentence.  He offers mitigating circumstances….he doesn’t sell drugs to anyone under the age of 18.  

Nearby a good samaritin notices a woman with car trouble.  The damsel in distress is leaning over the trunk of her car when he comes to assist her.  He is also a little tipsy and falls into her from behind.  He gets charged with indecent assault but maintains that it wasn’t “him” that fell into her…he just had a forty in his coat pocket.  Note:  A forty is a 40 ounce bottle of alcohol.  http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=forty

philliesnation.com

Criminals cross lines but they aren’t all completely bad.  They are human and they do bad things but most aren’t all bad.  Conversely, police aren’t all good.  They are protectors of the public and they generally do good but they sometimes do bad.  
Police go to an academy before they enter the workforce.  They learn the skills that they’ll need to serve and protect.  In addition to physical fitness, the arts of investigation, and weapons training, they are taught how to testify in court.

justiceproject.typepad.com

Unfortunately, this testimony training is precisely the tool they will need to convict even when they’ve done something unconstitutional.  
For example, the fourth amendment of the constitution demands that any search made by the police be made under a warrant supported by probable cause. A police officer cannot just come up to you and search you and your car for no good reason unless they have a warrant. 

There are a few exceptions.  

One exception is officer safety.  For example, an officer is allowed to pat you down for weapons.  Presumably, if you are carrying a gun or a machete, the officer can get to it before you do and thereby protect herself from you.  Of course, this is abused when officers search people without probable cause and illegally seize evidence.  Once this evidence is wrongly obtained, the officer does not need to worry because all she has to do is say that she searched for officer safety and found whatever was in your pocket.
When a defense attorney learns of this, she can file a motion to suppress.  Suppression is a remedy the courts use to deter illegal police activity.  What this means is that the court will exclude the evidence that was wrongfully obtained by the police and the State will have to prosecute its case without that evidence. 

criminal-lawyer-colorado.com

Most of the time, judges do not suppress. http://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1820&context=fss_papers  
Of course, the  remedy courts use when regular citizens do something illegal is generally jail time and this double standard is discussed here .
And because of their training and experience, they use the magic words…officer safety to hide a multitude of sins.  

They don't think like us.

By Shannon

In many states the law works like this: 

A pregnant woman and her husband decide they don’t want their baby so they agree that he will punch her stomach and kick her stomach.  The baby dies.  The father is guilty of Murder.  The mother is guilty of nothing.

A pregnant mother drinks alcohol, gets behind the wheel, crashes into a tree, the baby dies and the mother lives.  The mother is guilty of drunk driving, but is not guilty of anything regarding the dead baby inside of her.  However, if you drink, get behind the wheel, crash into that pregnant mother, and kill the baby inside of her and she lives, you are guilty of Intoxication Manslaughter.

I once had a defendant who, while on probation for possession of illegal drugs, gave birth to her fourth premature stillborn child.  We suspected that illegal drugs killed all four babies.  We had blood work to prove it killed the last two.  The mother was guilty of nothing.  If the children had lived and been born drug-addicted, she still would have been "not guilty."

I figured the lack of maternal accountability was due to the pro-choice lobbyists.  I was surprised to find that many states don’t have any provisions to punish pregnant mothers because of the pro-lifers.  Their argument goes like this:  If you hold mothers accountable for anything then they will be more likely to have an abortion.

I have news for you.  Criminals don’t think like us. 

Pic from www.abcnewsradioonline.com

It would not occur to most of them to get an abortion to hide a crime.  Most of them are too irresponsible to think that far ahead.  They don’t consider consequences.  If the pro-lifers asked prosecutors then they might have some idea of what they are allowing mothers to get away with and they might better meet their goal of protecting babies.  They don’t ask.

Last night I was watching Harry’s Law on NBC which I highly recommend.  Harry, who is a new criminal lawyer played by Kathy Bates, was attempting to mediate between two warring gangs.  One gangster asked Harry to help him get out of a gang without getting killed.  She told the leaders that she would hunt down “like a mad dog” anyone who killed anyone who wanted to get out of a gang.  In the final scene she’s called to the hospital because the kid who asked for her help has been very badly beaten.  He’s thanking her for helping him and she’s apologizing to him for getting him beaten up.  He finally says, “You really don’t get it, do you?  I owe you my life.”  Tearfully she answers, “No, I really don’t get it.”

Exactly.  They don’t think like us, but after awhile criminal lawyers learn to think like them.

I’m working a 17 year old cold-case murder in which one of the bad guys told all his criminal buddies that he’d committed this murder.  None of them reported it.  I said to my boss, “I know I don’t have the same frame of reference, but I really cannot imagine not reporting a murder!”  His response?

“I know, but they don’t think like us.”

My request:  When legislation is proposed regarding criminal penalties, call your District Attorney’s office.  I promise that if you ask them for help to understand the pros and cons of the proposed law, they will be:

1.)  excited that you are researching the issue,

2.)  flattered that you called them, and

3.)  very willing to discuss the matter with you. 

Too often a law or the lack of a law or a law that requires a very high mandatory minimum prison sentence sounds great to the public but has the effect of greatly hamstringing your public servants.

Survive with Dignity

By Ann

flickr.com

I was just a kid when I learned what it meant to have dignity.   We were in the city and it is impossible to find a parking spot in the city.   We found one but we just passed it so my grandmother and I got out to stand in the spot while my mother drove around the block.   We stood there and within seconds a long, lincoln towncar driven by a big guy in a suit with an even bigger guy in the passenger seat.  They yelled to my grandmother to take a walk.  She told them to get lost because she’s holding this spot.  

My grandmother stood there.   At less than five feet tall, wearing a fur coat, tons of gaudy jewelry, and little black heels, she stood.  The car backed into the spot within inches of her petite frame and I started to back away towards the sidewalk.   The guys began to scream obscenities at her and I ran onto the sidewalk because they could break us in half with either  their bare hands or their car, it didn’t matter.   But then they stopped backing up just  so that the passenger could open the door to better yell at her.  I was on the sidewalk and watched her stay put.   She did not move.   She did not back down.  She held her ground. Overcome with shame, I ran back into the spot with her.  I knew it was suicide but I could not let her stand alone.   I ran to her side and shook worse than my dog after a bath.   But I looked at her, mirrored her posture, and held my head high.  After the guys finally left, she looked down at me and told me to never run away again.  She let me know that it is ok to be scared, it is ok to be terrified, but it is never ok to give your dignity to anyone. 

amnesty.ca

Today we are bombarded with victims.  The victim mentality has swept the nation and everyone wants to be one.   32 states have amended their constitutions to include a bill of rights for crime victims.   http://www.ncvc.org/ncvc/main.aspx?dbName=DocumentViewer&DocumentID=32697   

Victims even have their own week.   

co.jefferson.co.us

This is a double edged sword.  It is empowering to real victims but it is exploited by attention seeking individuals who want to shirk personal responsibility.  They desperately cling to the title of victim at any cost, even to that of their own dignity. That is not to say that I am opposed to protecting people from being further victimized by the system and I don’t engage in the blaming the victim game for bona fide victims. 

 I just wonder why more people don’t want to be survivors.

   

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Your-Such-An-Attention-Seeker-Get-Over-Yourself-You-Aint-Nothing-Special/328554315237

Some “victims” come to court sentencings and always ask for the maximum penalty by law. They stand up and as they start to recite their overly rehearsed speech, I drown out their voices and in my head all  I can  hear is “I’m ready for my close up Mr. Demille.” 

For example, I represented a kid who had a temper tantrum at his mother’s house and broke some stuff.  The State charged him with a burglary because after a bitter argument with his mom, he broke in to her home to argue some more and to break stuff.   She came to his sentencing and the whole family took turns exclaiming how scared they were and how he shouldn’t be able to do this and they talked about themselves a lot.  This kid was 18 and he grew up in a foster home.  When he was a toddler, his mother gave him up to a foster home but kept little sister who was just a year younger.   She couldn’t afford both of them.  Of course he now acted out and broke some stuff.   She rejected him again and couldn’t take responsibilty for her part in his dysfunction.  She, of course, didn’t mention any of this in court. 

 Because of her grandstanding, he was sent to state prison with a felony at only 18 years old.  This woman, this victim, got her five minutes of fame in the courtroom, she insisted on a felony for her son, she gave up his childhood for him, and now she robbed him of his future.  The court then unilaterally decided that this kid did not deserve a chance. 

Bravo!

Too bad she didn’t have a little guidette grandmother to teach her about dignity.

"...and it can't be of very much use to yourself."

By Shannon

“Stupidity isn’t a crime.”

“There’s no law against being stupid.”

“You can’t put him in jail just for being stupid.”

These are half-jokes that criminal attorneys use to remind each other of a truth.  Many of us wish we could outlaw stupidity.

I recently made a joke in a public forum on the internet that I am ashamed of having made.  The forum was about domestic abuse.  People were debating whether or not it was the victim’s fault.  One man infuriated me when he explained that “she got what she deserved” for going near the abuser when he was mad.  I responded that the author of that statement was “a perfect example of the argument in favor of genetic engineering.”  I’m ashamed of my joke tonight.  I’m even more ashamed that it was only a half-joke.

Pic from www.hgalert.org

Genetic engineering is the current politically-correct phrase for an idea that has been around since at least the early 1900s.  Eugenics.  Tonight I heard a few quotes by supporters of eugenics that turned my stomach.  As I condemned the speakers, I realized I needed to take a long hard look at my view of “stupid” people and my half-jokes.  

“We civilized men…do our utmost to check the process of elimination; we build asylums for the imbecile, the maimed and the sick.  Thus the weak members of society propagate their kind.”

            ~Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, 1871

“If you’re not pulling your weight in the social boat, if you’re not producing as much as you consume, or perhaps a little more, then clearly we cannot use the organization of our society for the purpose of keeping you alive because your life does not benefit us, and it can’t be of very much use to yourself.”

            ~George Bernard Shaw, playwright, March 1910

Pic from www.jonesreport.com

“The multiplication of the feeble-minded is a very terrible danger to the race.”

            ~Winston Churchill, British Statesman,1910

Pic from www.noblelie.com

“Any group of farmers, who permitted their best stock not to breed, and let all the increase come from the worst stock, would be treated as fit inmates for an asylum.  Yet we fail to understand that such conduct is rational compared to the conduct of a nation which permits unlimited breeding from the worst stocks.”

            ~Theodore Roosevelt, U.S. President, 1/3/1913

“The most urgent problem… how to limit and discourage the over-fertility of the mentally and physically defective.” 

~Margaret Sanger, Founder of Planned Parenthood, “Birth Control Review” Oct 1921

Pic from www.theoccidentalobserver.net

“It is better for all the world, if instead of waiting to execute degenerate offspring for a crime or to let them starve for their imbecility, society can prevent those who are manifestly unfit from continuing their kind….” 

            ~U.S. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. in Buck v. Bell, 1924

“We do not want word to get out that we want to exterminate the negro population.”

            ~Margaret Sanger, Founder of Planned Parenthood in a letter to Clarence Gamble, 12/10/1939

Pic from www.boingboing.net

The theory of eugenics, which is the selective breeding of humans, began following Charles Darwin’s publication of The Origin of the Species and was supported by many prominent world citizens including Adolf Hitler.  At a meeting of the Eugenics Education Society in March 1910, beloved playwright George Bernard Shaw was the first to suggest gas chambers as a means of exterminating society’s undesirables.  Thanks to Nazi death camps that appeared less than 30 years later, the term “eugenics” became politically incorrect after WWII. 

Result of eugenics in Auschwitz.

Pic from www.phillips.blogs.com

Today we call the idea “genetic engineering.”

Whether one wants to use eugenics or genetic engineering to “protect the race” as evidenced by the words of those quoted above (as well as Adolf Hitler’s actions) or whether you are merely a criminal attorney who half-jokes that the world would be better with fewer stupid people, the idea is morally abhorrent.  Who is George Bernard Shaw and who are we to decide if a life is justified?

It takes all kinds to make the fabric of life rich and multi-textured.  By a eugenicist’s logic, an autistic child or one that is mentally handicapped or physically deformed is one that should be sterilized and even "compassionately" killed.  However, anyone who’s been around an autistic or otherwise handicapped child can clearly see that they generally offer more kindness and goodness than most of the highest functioning among us.

I must echo Ann’s conclusion from Friday… in determining others to be “less than” or undesirable or unfit for life, we ourselves become “less than” human.

Pic from www.noiri.blogspot.com

SHOUT OUT!

We want to give a shout out to our international readers!  We are excited to have readers from over 15 nations!  We're aware you read and hope you keep reading!

Pic from www.fhswolvesden.wikispaces.com

Who Can You Trust?

By Ann

interacc.typepad.com

Who should you vote for?  It depends on what issues you feel are most important and on the person that you feel is most qualified.   Today’s post is not about national politics and I’m not going to tell you how you should vote in that arena- although I have strong convictions and have several ideas and if you want some guidance just send me an email and I will be more than happy to oblige.

I am talking about local politics.  People vote down the line of their prospective political party and generally don’t do any research into the candidates that they pick.  This is dangerous because the elected official may not be a good person and they will surely be in a position that affects the lives of many.

As I sit here, I am watching a high profile case whereby a judge was convicted of racketeering and sending juveniles to jail in exchange for money kickbacks.   He was elected.

ottingerlaw.com

 

A  few counties over a trial court judge also made headlines when he broke his former paramour’s arm during a heated argument.   The object of his affection is a public defender and she had to get a protection from abuse order  in the hopes that it deters him from coming after her.   He was elected.

wishfulcanvas.blogspot.com

A local police investigator who was well known for his role in the prosecution of high profile sex offenses and child porn cases has just been arrested for trying to solicit a thirteen year old girl online.   He also set up a webcam, danced naked to lady gaga, and told her to delete the conversation so her mom wouldn’t know.  He wasn’t elected but I couldn’t resist.   

odt.co.nz

 

The television set is flooding my living room with tales of corruption and sensational guilty verdicts.   I think back to a conversation I had with my client’s father.  He wanted to know if he was going to win at trial.  I couldn’t give him a definitive answer.  He tried to bond with me and differentiate his son with the influx from a nearby city.  Note: influx to the locals is code for people who are not white.  Ironically, his son is charged with one of the most serious of offenses and the  “influx” rarely if ever commits these types of crimes.   I resisted the urge to confront this guy with his hypocrisy.

But it also made me think that I should be scared of people who are in a position of power, influence, or status.   They have a sense of entitlement and a lack of personal responsibility for their bad behavior just because they are not poor, illiterate, or marginalized.

  

In their quest to differentiate themselves from the acts of people they deem “less than”  they become less than… human. 

prwatch.org

Without Passion or Prejudice?

By Shannon

“I represent the government of the United States without passion or prejudice and my client has a case.” ~ Kevin Bacon in A Few Good Men

The other day my Facebook status read:  “Working on another case that turns my stomach.  Why did I become a lawyer?”  Several friends quickly responded that someone has to fight the good fight and encouraged me to keep on fighting. 

What about the times that I’m not sure I’m on the right side?

My friends assume that I’m on the right side because I’m a prosecutor.  When I was a defense attorney they assumed (correctly) that I was trying to help people.  My friends give me the benefit of the doubt and I love them for it.  Truth is I became a lawyer so that I would know how to help people.

What about times I’m given orders that could be wrong and right?

The case I’m working is still pending, so I cannot give you details yet.  Sufficed to say that my boss wants one result for the sake of justice and I think justice demands a different result.  I actually find myself on the defendant’s side on this one, but the State is my client.  My job description is statutorily defined as “to do justice” NOT “to win convictions and get the longest punishment possible.” 

What happens when what my client and/or my boss wants is not immoral, but may or may not be just – or worse, it may be and may not be just at the same time?

People think lawyers are greedy amateur human beings with no hearts and no souls.  Some are.  However, the majority wrestle with our consciences and with justice.  Sometimes there simply are no winners.

Without passion or prejudice, Kevin Bacon?  Tonight I wrestle with both.

Pic from www.aveleyman.com

Voir Dire

By Ann

“My name is Ms. Defender and I have the privilege of representing this man.”  I point to the man seated next to me and I hope that no one notices the huge tattoo on his neck or his wrinkled clothes.   Ninety people are jammed into this courtroom and they are all quietly staring at me.   I am probably not what they expected when they heard they were going to be picked as jurors on a felony offense.    After all, the image of the fast talking used car salesman type in a slick suit and an expensive pinky ring is a pervasive stereotype in the minds of the general public.  Truth be told, I look more like a flight attendant than a slick lawyer or even a used car salesman for that matter.  Usually, this works to my advantage, however, today the prosecutor and the judge were both attractive women who didn’t look like their prospective stereotypes either.

I began the voir dire.  That is just a fancy way of saying I get to ask the jury questions to see if the members of this pool are fair and impartial.  Being fair and impartial means that a juror will look at the facts and evidence presented and make a decision based only on that and not on anything else.  The object of voir dire is to ensure that the accused is afforded a fair trial.

This is a big fat exercise in futility.  People who are prejudicial, biased, crazy, or vindictive rarely raise their hand and let us know.  Nonetheless, voir dire is an excellent opportunity for me to get to know them as best I can.  And the reality is that it is at this time that your jurors pick which lawyer they like better.   Frankly, I believe that the verdict is largely based on who the jury likes better.

I begin my questions and start the old dog and pony show.   Some people laugh and get involved, while others sit there in a catatonic state.   I know that the ones that laugh and identify with me will be quickly struck by the prosecution but voir dire is still a great opportunity that cannot be ignored by any competent litigator.

After the voir dire, the defense and the prosecutor  get to strike people we don’t want on the jury.  We have a list of papers with the jurors’ names and we each take a turn crossing off people.  This is called peremptory strikes.  It is a felony trial so I get to strike seven people and so does the prosecutor.   We get to get rid of anybody for almost any reason (with limits like it can’t be for race).   Of course, during the voir dire, we get unlimited strikes for cause (racist, prejudiced, biased, impartial, etc.).   

I look at the mass of people sitting patiently in front of me.  This is hard because the people who don’t get picked don’t really know why.  They don’t know who got rid of them and I suspect they always think it’s me.  I hate being a part of making some people feel rejected and unwanted.  I have gone through all of the questionnaires, I have asked people questions, I have gotten rid of the man wearing a sign that reads “the end is near” and the teen-aged goth chick who kept giggling with her imaginary friend.  

www.badlawyernyc.blogspot.com

 But I still have one person left to strike.   I can see the looks.  They wonder who I am getting rid of.  They wonder at my strategy and they probably guess how my legal training and ability will shape the fate of the last juror.  

www.stus.com

Well here it is.   

 

Inny minny miney moe… out you go.  

  

And where my pen drops is the name that gets excused.